This invention relates to a pet restraint generally, and more particularly to a ground-insertable stake having a unique, tangle-free configuration.
Household pets have a variety of personalities. Some animals are lethargic, and exist mainly to occupy space in their owner""s home. Other animals seem to be filled with unlimited energy, which can be hazardous to the owner""s fragile or precious belongings. If not controlled or constructively channeled, this energy can wreak havoc on the relationship between pet and owner, and cause the owner to restrain or otherwise restrict the movement of the pet while indoors. This can cause the pet to feel caged, unwanted and even depressed.
For an owner of an active pet, there is no greater joy than being able to maintain the pet in an outdoor environment, where the animal is allowed to roam and play within the boundaries provided by a restraint, without constant attention from the pet owner. Conventional methods of restraint, such as, for example, tying the animal""s leash around a tree or a fence post, are fraught with deficiencies. Assuming the property actually contains a tree or a fence post, the leash usually gets caught, twisted, tightened or otherwise constricted thereabout, resulting in a severe reduction in mobility of the animal. Thus, the ability of the pet owner to attend to other matters is severely restricted if such pet owner has to routinely xe2x80x9cfreexe2x80x9d the tangled animal from the restraint.
Other conventional restraining methods, such as augur-type stakes having loops on their exposed ends, also tend to be deficient in many respects. Such stakes tend to be essentially hidden from view, and pose a serious tripping or lawnmower blade hazard to the unwary. Such stakes also tend to be forgotten, and if anchored deep enough into the ground, may never be used again until someone mistakenly trips over them. In addition, many of the conventional stakes do not achieve their primary function of providing free mobility to the animal, and are often equipped with surfaces that catch or otherwise cause a tightening of the leash thereabout. Once the leash catches on the restraint, it is usually just a matter of time before the leash winds around itself until the animal is no longer able to move.
Even a simple stake equipped with a stop plate arranged thereon, which plate is supposed to come to rest upon the ground and limit over-insertion of the stake, has several shortcomings. First, the stop plate is usually much closer to the top of the stake near the leash-receiving section than the pointed bottom of the stake, and thus assumes that the user will, or will even be able to, insert the stake to the appropriate depth where the plate is flush with the ground. If the stake is not inserted to a point where the stop plate is flush with the ground, the xe2x80x9cfloatingxe2x80x9d plate becomes a surface or location that is ripe for entanglement. Second, even if the user is able to insert the stake to a point where the plate contacts the ground, the contact surface of the plate is easily moveable under the slightest forceful movement from the animal, which often results in a gap between the plate and the ground and yet another critical location of entanglement. Since the plate doesn""t actually engage or penetrate into the ground, there is always a high probability that entanglement will occur near or around the upper and/or lower surface of the plate.
A pet restraint should therefore serve at least two critical functions. First, it must restrain the animal within a certain defined boundary. Second, it must allow the animal to move freely within such boundary. Obviously from a human perspective, the restraint should also be easy to use, sturdy in design and easy to locate while inserted into the ground. As noted above, one of the major shortcomings of the prior art is the problem of entanglement caused by constructional limitations or improper use of the restraint. Cognizant of the problems plaguing the prior art, the present inventor has devised a tangle-free pet restraint having a unique construction that overcomes such shortcomings.
The ground-insertable pet restraint of the present invention comprises an elongated stake having a leash-receiving section for attachment of an animal leash thereto. The restraint further comprises a ground-engaging, snag-free surface member defined between the leash-receiving section of the stake and the ground, which prevents an animal""s leash from tangling on or wrapping about the restraint. Because the snag-free surface member is ground-engaging, an animal is unable to separate the snag-free surface member from the ground and thereby create a gap location that is ripe for entanglement. In addition, through the use of an outwardly flaring, snag-free surface member, the restraint of the present invention is conspicuously insertable into the ground, and less capable of becoming hidden, forgotten, tripped over or cut up by a lawnmower blade or the like.
It is an object of the present invention, therefore, to provide a pet restraint that is tangle-free and snag-free.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a pet restraint that is conspicuously insertable into the ground.
It is a still further object of the present invention to provide a pet restraint that allows an animal restrained thereto by a leash or the like to move freely around the restraint without getting caught or tangled about a surface or constructional feature of such restraint.
Still other objects and advantages of the invention will become clear upon review of the following detailed description in conjunction with the appended drawings.
A pet restraint is constructed from an elongated stake having a leash-receiving section positioned near the upper end of the stake and a ground-insertable section at the lower end of the stake. A snag-free surface member having a ground-engaging element is connected to the stake near the leash-receiving section and extends between the leash-receiving section and the ground to provide a snag-free, tangle-free pet restraint. The snag-free surface member is preferably further adapted to maintain the upper end of the pet restraint at a certain height from the ground so as to be conspicuous to any passerby.